Non-smeter, but important when school begins. Wifi in schools is the norm now, even in schools that have wired access. Fiber optic cable provides internet access that is faster, more efficient (if carries more data), is more secure, and doesn’t irradiate children and teachers.

Letters:

Mr. Bill Good. I don’t like knowingly listening to lies. Mr. Reid was lying. He was lying when he stated it was an easy fix to call the office and expect prompt action. That is the old hydro he’s referring to. Thousands will attest to being told to pay the bill and goodbye. He was lying when he said smart meter installers immediately started checking bases as a favour to their customers, even though that was not considered by hydro to be part of the smart meter exchange.

On this last topic please let me be perfectly clear. It was only when there were a number of house fires (one in Port Alberni wrote the home off) and umpteen fried appliances, TV’s, Computers and Fridges. In North America there were literally hundreds of meter fires and fires attributed to the installation. Only public outcry eventually encouraged hydro to begin checking the bases. I contend that not checking the bases prior to mounting the meter is and was tantamount to negligence. How could you not check the base, the component you are mounting the meter to, and still walk away saying you had completed another safe install? Not possible.

We have installed 1.9 million new meters over the last three years and they have a proven safety record. B.C. Hydro’s new meters have undergone thorough quality assurance testing by both the manufacturer and B.C. Hydro to ensure they are safe, accurate and reliable.

There is no evidence a B.C. Hydro smart meter has ever been the cause of a fire in British Columbia. In fact, research by the University of the Fraser Valley shows that there have been fewer residential structure fires associated with electricity in B.C. since B.C. Hydro started installing smart meters in 2011. This is because we repaired more than 3,000 pre-existing unsafe meter socket conditions on customers’ homes at no cost to the homeowner during our installations. All of these repairs were done by certified electricians.

Keith Anderson, B.C. Hydro

Absolute BS Mr. Anderson, and you bloody well know it. We’ll hold your feet to the fire because truth will eventually rise above the stench of BC Hydro/Bc Liberal lies. Where did you learn to park your conscience?

From the member who had his power disconnected for non-payment of legacy fees!! Personal info. given with his permission.

I am Kip Drobish, the former BC Hydro customer since having been disconnected on the morning of the 4th at our home 20 km north of New Denver. I am in the solar sales and installation business and already since 2010 been operating with a grid-tied, battery back-up system to cover our frequent outages. Now we will be operating our homes power needs with an off-grid solar PV and solar hot water system. I had promised BC Hydro that if they forced us to have a “Smart Meter” we would disconnect. When they created their “Meter Choices” program we decided to refuse to pay what appears to be a punitive fee. Now we will see how they proceed and try to collect what should have never been charged. We have been paying the other charges for service and consumption which is a smaller portion of the billing.

I have been meaning to be a participant in the class action lawsuit. I just haven’t gotten around to it. If you need any more information I will share what I can. I did ask the BC Hydro employee who came if there were others on a list to disconnect and he said there weren’t.

Anyway we are changing over to propane for cooking and adding battery storage and a generator to our home power system. Being as I am in the loop for acquiring solar hardware, our cost for batteries and fuel for a generator in several of the winter months will be about equal to the legacy meter fees, except now I don’t have to pay the daily charge and usage charges. We may come out ahead, but being a power plant manager isn’t for everyone and going off-grid, and starting from scratch is definitely still a more expensive proposition for most electrical users except those with very low power consumption that can meet their needs with less hardware and batteries.